There has been a revolution recently in online marketing and Google has been the driving force, with their numerous algorithm updates: Panda; Penguin and Top Heavy. Ironically, in an attempt to improve the quality of search results, Google have accelerated the importance of building an online brand and somewhat lessened the need to be found for keywords.
SEO is a dying practice and this, in my opinion, is the best thing to ever happen to online marketing. Why?
1. It is good for your online and offline brand development. By focussing on your brand, this will encourage customers to also focus on your brand rather than keywords.
2. Panda has resulted in better quality content, this means users and potential customers will gain a better understanding of your brand.
3. Links aren’t just for volume any more. Good links from relevant sites are driving referral traffic and a lot more of this traffic is converting!
So what does this mean for search engines?
Simply put, keyword driven traffic from search engines doesn’t have the same value it once did. Branded search traffic is much more likely to convert. A year ago, getting to number 1 on Google was the ultimate goal and whilst it is still important for visibility it means nothing if it doesn’t result in a new customer or a returning visitor.
So what I’m trying to say is stop worrying about what an algorithm thinks of your site and start worrying about what your user thinks!
